The Explode Pirates
by Miss Franky
Summary: Kerra knows what she wants: To become King of the Pirates be she a girl or not! After seeing Luffy's wanted poster, she knows she wants to fight him. Unfortunately for her, and even more so for her crew mates, the Strawhats aren't exactly easy to follow.
1. The Boy on the Wanted Poster

Disclaimer: One Piece is a work of such brilliance that I shouldn't even be allowed to know of! (I don't own it)

AN: First fic in a verrry long time, but I'm already having fun with this one. I'm ready to accept the flames that will most likely come my way due to the fact that this story is mostly my OCs. But I still think that it should be amusing and I hope that those of you who read this will like it!

-Suki

-0-0-0-

"Oh my god! Mada! Come look at this!"

Mada sighed contemptuously, "Kerra, for the last time, I do not want to see the piece of skin you pulled off the bottom of your foot!"

"No, it's not that!"

"Nor to I want to see you eat it!"

Silence.

"Okay, well it's not _just_ that. Just come look!"

Mada shut the book she was reading and left the comfort of her cabin to the salty atmosphere of the deck. She spotted Kerra perched on a cannon reading the newspaper; something completely uncharacteristic. Kerra hated anything that threatened to burst her bubble of oblivion.

"Yes?"

"Lookit!" She exclaimed, shoving a piece of paper under Mada's nose. Mada disliked having unknown objects put in her face, but she had gotten used to it in the few weeks she'd been traveling with Kerra. Mada took the paper away from Kerra and held it in a more readable position. It was a wanted poster. The boy in the photo was smiling idiotically, the background a scene of destruction. He looked to have the IQ of a grain of sand. Perhaps two grains, if pushed.

"Monkey D. Luffy?" Mada quirked an eyebrow, "So?"

"Just look at him! And look at that bounty!" Mada acknowledged that 30,000,000 Belli was unusually high. "That's the highest bounty in the East Blue! And guess how he got it!"

"Why don't you tell me?"

"He defeated Arlong!"

"Arlong?" Mada had heard the name before, but the way Kerra prattled on about famous pirates, often using their wanted posters to illustrate her explanations (more than once, Mada had been victim to a "wanted poster puppet show"'), there was simply no way she could remember all the names.

"Yeah! The Fish-man! A vicious slab of part-fish, part-man fighting, killing machine! With razor sharp teeth too!" Mada nodded. Despite how little she cared about this boy, she was impressed. Kerra continued to ramble. Mara decided to just listen instead of trying to follow her thoughts, it was giving her a headache to try to do so. "He looks young, doesn't he? Maybe my age? A little older? God, he must be strong! How do you think he fights? Let's find him!"

This last statement caught Mada completely off guard. "What?"

"Yeah!" Kerra grinned, "I want to fight him!"

"Are you insane?" Mada waved the poster around, "Look at this bounty! You'll get yourself killed!"

"Hey!" Kerra snatched the paper back out of the other girl's hand, "Don't hurt it!" She smoothed the poster on her knee, making sure that no permanent damage had been done. She looked up and stared into the distance, obviously thinking. "Um, I think Arlong Park is on Commi Island, so set a course for there! We're gonna find out where he's going next!" The girl hopped off the cannon and bounced off to her own cabin, no doubt going to add Luffy's poster to her already expansive collection.

Mada heaved a sigh; what had she gotten herself into? She glanced up at the skull and crossbones emblazoned on the main sail and stuck her tongue out at it. She stormed into her quarters to locate Commi on a map and 'set a course for there.' Such was as her captain had commanded, and such was her duty as a pirate to comply.


	2. Meant to Be

Disclaimer: One Piece is a work of such brilliance that I shouldn't even be allowed to know of! (I don't own it)

AN: I really hate this chapter it just _would not flow_. I think maybe it's because I don't know Kerra as well when she's a kid, as she is for most of this chapter. sigh -- But it was pretty necessary to provide at least a smattering of background, I think. Don't worry though, the third chapter's way better.

Also, jolly roger means skull and crossbones.

Reviews:

**Lieju:** Thank you so much for the first review for this fic! I'm glad you considered this even though you don't like OCs. I hope I don't disappoint.

**Alexandra McDougal:** Yay! Constructive criticism! I had realized that there was sort of a non-setting going on, but I really couldn't find a way to describe the location or the characters without making it seem forced. It may not be the best solution, but I thought I would scatter that sort of information gradually instead of just dumping it out. Thanks much, it was really helpful. I probably wouldn't have remembered to describe the ship if not for your comment.

**Bunny The Assassin:** Thanks a lot! I'm happy you liked it and I hope you like this chapter, too!

-0-0-0-

"Papa! Lookit!" the young girl cried, holding a piece of paper up to him. Her green eyes shone brightly in excitement. She could only reach his elbow, but he paid the paper as much attention as if it were right in front of his eyes. He reached down and tenderly took it from his daughter, abandoning the gunpowder and chemicals in front of him.

"Wow! Did you draw this all by yourself?" he beamed down at his little girl. She grinned back, gaps showing were she had knocked most of her baby teeth out, attempting some reckless activity or another. She loved it when her father smiled. His normally rough looking face, with his sharp nose, handlebar mustache, and constant five' o'clock shadow, turned tender whenever he looked at her.

"Yup! It's my very own pirate flag! BOOM!" she exclaimed, mimicking the word written on the forehead of the skull, though the skull looked more like a mashed hamster cookie. Her grin faded and she achieved a faraway look in her eyes, "Papa, tell me again about the pirates?"

"Again?" he asked, nevertheless scooping up the girl and cradling her in the crook of his left arm, transferring the weight into his hip. "Well, I was about five or six—your age—and I was right here in this shop, watching _my_ papa making explosives, just – like – you." With these last three words, he tapped the girl's nose playfully on each syllable. She giggled happily. "And then I heard a big commotion going on outside. I ran to the door and in the harbor was a HUGE pirate ship! It had a pirate flag and everything!

"Not many pirates ever came to this island because we're so out of the way, so of course everyone was really excited, but not me. I was scared out of my mind! I'd heard how dangerous pirates could be, and these guys looked really mean. You should have seen the captain; he was as big as a bear! I thought they'd come to rob us and set our village on fire, but I was being ridiculous, of course."

"Right!" the girl interjected, right on cue, "They were just here to buy supplies!"

"That's right. They were heading for the Grand Line. The Pirate King, Gold Roger, had just been executed and these men were going after his treasure to make that captain the next King of the Pirates. They needed food, fresh water, weaponry, that sort of thing, and he came into this shop!" the girl squealed in delight, "Now, my father built his explosives for mining, but this giant of a man praised them as bombs; the likes of which he'd never seen. Now, I'm not sure whether he just didn't have a very good eye for explosives or whether he felt like unloading a lot of money, but he offered to buy out the entire shop. The money that he would pay would have fed us for a year!

"But my father declined. He told this gigantic human being that these were bombs for blowing up rocks, not people. I was horrified! How could he speak this way to a pirate! It didn't matter what they used our bombs for, just as long as they weren't used on us!

"I was about to run for cover when I heard my father burst out laughing. He told him that if he worked quickly, he could finish a shop full of the kind of bombs he was looking for in three weeks. I had never heard my father talk like that before, but three weeks later, that man had enough bombs to last him a year, and we had enough money for _two_ years.

"I'm not sure whether it was the sheer size of the man or the money he gave us or just the thrill of adventure these pirates carried around with them, but I knew I wanted to be a pirate!" Here, the man paused, his excited smile faded and he suddenly looked very tired.

"But it never happened," he smiled into his daughter's face, "I guess it just wasn't meant to be."

"It will for me, Papa!" the girl shouted, the fire of determination burning in her eyes, "I will become the King of the Pirates!"

He smiled joyously and put his forehead against hers, "I know it!"

-0-0-0-

"Jyouno! Give it back!" The girl screamed, tears pouring down her face, having fallen down yet again, trying to grab her precious object back. She had chased the boy all over the beach and was filthy for all her attempts. Her normally honey colored hair was almost black with sand.

"Aww, you crying about it? Poor little Kerra," He laughed and stuck his tongue out at her, holding the piece of black cloth further above her head.

Kerra, now nine years old, had not changed much. She was still playful and determined, but right now she was enraged. She detested Jyouno and how he always made fun of her. She wished she were strong enough to make him regret how he treated her. She stared up at his face and hated how short she was compared to him.

"Why's it so important to you anyway? It's just a dumb old drawing."

"No it's not!" She shrieked, "It's my pirate flag! I need it!" She had gotten the black cloth for her birthday and had spent days painstakingly drawing her personal jolly roger on it. The skull's mouth was spread in a grin and its tongue was sticking out the side of its mouth. Instead of a nose it had a blush line across the middle of its face and its right eye was shut in a wink. On its forehead, it had the word "BOOM" written in big black letters. It was her trademark and it meant the world to her.

"What're you ever gonna need this for? You ain't never gonna be a pirate."

"Yes I will! I'm gonna be King of the Pirates!"

Jyouno laughed enthusiastically; this is exactly what he had waited to hear. "King? You can't be King! You're a girl!"

"I can be whatever I want! And I _will_ be a pirate!"

"Ha! Like you could. You can't do anything!"

"You're wrong! I can—" Kerra halted. A light came into her eyes and her face brightened. Without another word, she scrambled to her feet and ran off, leaving a bewildered Jyouno holding her flag.

Kerra came back twenty minutes later to find Jyouno sitting on a rock, eating a pear, and _using her flag as a napkin_. Oh, there was nothing gonna save that boy now.

She marched up to him confidently. "Last chance, Jyouno. You give me that flag now, or pay the price." Jyouno took a particularly sloppy bite from his pear and wiped his chin on the flag. Kerra scowled. She knew she would get in trouble for what she was about to do, but it didn't matter. She pulled a matchbox out of her pocket, struck a match, lit the bomb held in her hand, and lobbed it at Jyouno. It exploded on impact. Jyouno was blasted off the rock and landed in the sand with a thud.

Kerra stomped over and grabbed her flag, now in tatters, but that didn't matter so much anymore. It had become a matter of pride, and that was one thing that she refused to let go. She hugged the flag to her chest and promised to find a way to patch it up when she got home.

-0-0-0-

"Papa, where are you?" Kerra called tentatively, boarding the dock and heading towards a ship anchored there. She had been minding her father's shop and making the explosives for an extensive order due the next day, her father having stayed at home, complaining of a headache. Normally, her father would have suffered through work and accompanied Kerra, not quite trusting alone in the bomb shop, despite that fact that she was already fifteen, but for some unknown reason, that had not been the case that day.

Because of the large amount of bombs she'd been forced to complete in such a short amount of time, she'd gotten home quite late, only to find a note in place of her father.

_Kerra-_

_Come to the docks. There's a boat waiting there. Meet me onboard._

_-Your Papa_

Kerra looked up the gangplank leading up to the deck of the ship her father had mentioned. Whose ship was this even? Kerra shrugged; it was probably okay. She was just about to set foot on the deck when the ship suddenly sprang to life. The sail unfurled, dozens of lights were suddenly glowing in her face, held of course by the people who'd been hiding in wait for her.

"SURPRISE!"

It might have been the lights thrown in her face, it might have been the gust of wind caused when the sail came down, it might have been the screaming people, or it might have been the heart attack brought on by all three combined, but one way or another, Kerra toppled of the plank and into the water.

-0-0-0-

Kerra stood on deck, soggy and shivering, glaring at her father, who was equally wet after jumping in to save her, but was of a far better disposition. The rest of the village stood around laughing at the two of them.

"Great idea, Papa! 'Ooh, let's scare her near the edge of something very high!' I could've drowned!"

"I know, sorry!" He grinned sheepishly, "But you were surprised, right?"

"Yes, so surprised I nearly _died_." Kerra glowered, "What the hell is this for anyway?"

The amiable chatter grew silent. Kerra's father looked dubious.

"You're kidding, right?"

"No, about what?"

"Kerra, it's your birthday," Koti, the owner of a local restaurant, ventured.

"What? Nuh-uh." Kerra started counting on her fingers, muttering to herself, "Oh, hell! It is, isn't it?" she laughed raucously, trying to cover up how embarrassed she was.

Her father sighed, "Sure, you forget my birthday every year, but this is the first time you've forgotten your own."

"Yeah, oops," She grinned, her soaking state all but forgotten, seeming incredibly like her father had only moments before. "So, whose boat is this?"

Again, the company on deck grew quiet and stared openmouthed. Rodari, the carpenter, smiled kindly and rumpled her hair.

"Your complete lack of observation is a gift and a curse, darlin'," he chuckled, " I was able to build the entire ship without you noticing, but you don't even realize what's right in front of you."

"What's right in front of me?" Kerra looked around; if it was right in front of her, she should be able to see it.

"For god's sake, Kerra!" several people yelled simultaneously and pointed up at the sail. Kerra craned her neck to see behind herself and nearly fell over. Spanning the sail was a giant jolly roger grinning back at her. However, it wasn't just any jolly roger, it was _hers_. She'd been doodling it on every piece of paper she'd gotten her hands on since she was five and now she was staring at it on the sail of a pirate ship. _Her _pirate ship.

She stopped to examine it more closely, now that she was aware of just what it was. The main deck was wide and expansive, the only obstacle being the main mast. This was obviously designed with Kerra's tendency to run into things in mind. There were two upper decks, one in front and one in the back. Underneath both were doorways. Kerra couldn't see where they led, but she knew she would have plenty of time to inspect below deck later. The upper deck at the stern had the helm positioned near the railing overlooking the rest of the ship, and behind this was another cabin. Closer still to the stern, she could see the edge of 4 or 5 cannons. She hoped that there were cannons below deck, too. The figurehead was just a giant bomb.

"No, it's mine?" she asked, turning to look at her father, tears brimming her eyes, "What's her name?"

He smiled happily, clearly having been waiting for this question, "The Fire Hazard,"

Kerra laughed and grinned, "I like it." She looked around again, already loving every bit of it. She turned back to her father, "I can really do it, can't I?" He wrapped her in a tight embrace.

"Yes, sweetie. You really can."

She and her father shared their tender moment for a second longer before Kerra broke away to slap Rodari on the arm, "What the hell were you thinking building me a ship! How do you expect me to make this thing move all by myself?"

"Cool it!" he put his hands up defensively, lest she tried to hit him in the face, "I told you _I_ built it, didn't I? You think I hadn't taken that into account? I made this ship for _you_. It can be easily managed by one person."

"Oh." She looked at her toes, "Sorry, Rodari. My bad."

"Yeah, well," he rumpled her hair again, as was his habit, "It's your birthday, so I guess I'll let it go. Whaddaya say we head back to town and celebrate this properly?" Many hearty agreements could be heard as the people began emptying off the ship. Kerra stopped to look once more.

"Kerra, are you coming?" Her father called.

"Yeah, Papa! Be right there." Kerra flashed one last grin up at her mast before hurrying to catch up. This was it. She really would do it. She _would_ become King of the Pirates.


	3. The First Mate

Disclaimer: One Piece is a work of such brilliance that I shouldn't even be allowed to know of! (I don't own it)

AN: Thanks everyone so much for your support! I feel much better about this chapter than the last one, and thank god for that one! Also, the "SPUTTER" down below is taken from an author's note in **JoIsBishMyoga**'s _A Good Offense_. Anyone who doesn't know it should read it and its preceding fic as they are literally the best things I have ever read. I didn't ask about the "sputter" thing because it wasn't technically a part of her fic. I hope it's okay . . .

Reviews:

**Lieju: **Are you seriously not a native English speaker? I would have never guessed. Your English is impeccable, far better than mine, anyway (though that's not saying a lot). And yeah, that is pretty much the idea. I'm not too good at hiding things, huh? I do plan to let the Explode Pirates have some of their own adventures, however. I'm still not sure whether they are going to catch up to Luffy eventually, though. Anyway, thank you so much for the review, it means a ton to me that you like the story!

**Bunny the Assassin: **Ooh, thank you! I love your reviews! Be warned however that your praise is inflating my already humongous head.

-0-0-0-

Kerra sat at the bar in the restaurant, examining the food currently speared on her fork. Was it a vegetable? Possibly meat of some sort? A new breed of veggie-meat hybrid? She threw the waitress a dirty look, certain of an attempt to poison her. In return, she received a frightening glare that was a clear instruction to eat everything in front of her. Kerra began shoveling her lunch into her mouth as quickly as she could. It wasn't all that bad. In fact, she thought about ordering seconds.

Kerra had been traveling for about a week now and was still not out of the South Blue. She was anxious to reach the Grand Line, but not so impatient that she was acting foolish. She knew that her skill alone would not allow her to survive in such a harsh environment. She needed some Nakama.

Suddenly, without warning, the girl sitting next to Kerra shot up from her seat. Kerra jumped and her fork clattered to the floor. The whole restaurant stared in silence as the girl marched over to the man sitting at the table behind her and slapped him across the face with the declaration "Pig!" She glared at him for a minute longer before turning and leaving the restaurant altogether. Gradually, conversation returned to the area. Kerra bent down to retrieve her fork and the food still attached to it.

She picked a piece of lint off the veggie-meat thing and asked, "What was that all about?" before stuffing it into her mouth.

"That," the waitress replied, picking up the other girl's plate of half-eaten food, "was Mada. She read minds."

SPUTTER.

"_What!_" she spat her food out in amazement (though maybe also because it was slightly furry).

"Yeah," the waitress sighed, "ever since she was a kid. People don't treat he right for it. Poor girl." She left to deposit Mada's plate into the tub of dirty dishes.

Kerra grinned and popped another thing into her mouth. She decided that there wouldn't be time for seconds.

-0-0-0-

Mada scowled at the blank canvas in front of her. _Why_ was it still blank? After three months, _still blank_. She put her charcoal to the paper and held it there. She closed her eyes and exhaled through her nose. Wait; there was something, maybe . . . something . . .

Someone pounded loudly on Mada's front door.

She hurled the charcoal away, frustrated. She yanked the door open, fully ready to reprimand whoever had come to visit, but was surprised into docility at the sight of someone completely unfamiliar. It was girl, a bit shorter than she. She was wearing a light blue button up shirt, a short gray skirt, and had no shoes at all. She had light brown, almost blond, hair and on her face was let alone the most idiotic grin she had ever seen.

"What am I thinking?" she gushed.

"Huh?"

"Read my mind! What am I thinking?"

Wait, this was the girl who had been sitting next to her in the restaurant, Mada remembered. Her irritation deepened. Of course. This sort of thing had happened before. "Is it true? Can you really hear thoughts? Do me!" Fine. Anything to make her go away. She closed her eyes and delved into the strange girl's mind. Mada reopened her eyes and looked quizzically at her. Seriously?

"Uh, you're thinking the word 'cheese' over and over again."

"Right!" the girl exclaimed, suddenly launching forward and tackling Mada in a hug. They both nearly toppled over. It was unusual for Mada to be surprised by anything, but this girl gave almost no warning. I think, therefore, I do, seemed to be her philosophy.

"Get off!" Mada shoved the girl away. Why did she do that and what did she . . . oh no. "Absolutely not!" Mada shouted and slammed the door in the girl's face: a response to the thought she had just heard.

"Come on!" a voice complained on the other side of the door, "Why not?"

Mada inched the door back open, glaring. "What a thing to ask. I have a life here, you know! A house! A job! I can't just drop everything and go with you on your little cruise. Besides which, I. Don't. Like. You. Now go away," she shut the door on the girl again and prayed that she would leave. She did. Thankfully, she at least knew when she was defeated.

-0-0-0-

Kerra was not defeated by a long shot.

She had returned to the Hazard and was now pacing the deck, thinking of a solution.

So she had been clearly and bluntly denied. So what? She had always been good at getting her way, even when her father had obviously defined his sentiments of "no". The fact that Mada was someone she didn't know just meant that she had to be a bit more creative.

Kerra slid to the ground against the mast of the Fire Hazard and started to think. Why had her offer been declined?

Item 1: Mada had a life

Item 2: Mada had a house.

Item 3: Mada had a job.

Item 4: Mada found Kerra incredibly distasteful.

Kerra decided that Item 4 was something too big to solve at the moment. Mada would end up liking her once she joined the crew anyway. Now, the other three items were things that she could deal with in the present. How could she make Mada abandon those? Kerra bit her lower lip, deep in thought.

A light came into her eyes and her face brightened. Yes! That was it! Perfect!

She exploded to her feet and launched herself over the railing. She needed to find out as much about Mada as possible; her job, he schedule, everything. But above all, she needed to stay far, far away from the other girl at all costs, because Kerra knew there would only be one thing occupying her thoughts from that point forward.

-0-0-0-

Kerra crouched in the shade of a tree several yards away from Mada's house. It was dusk and the sky was nearly void of all light. She hoped she was out of Mada's thought reading range; there was no way she would be found otherwise.

After talking to everyone she could find (luckily, most people were out shopping, but Kerra had had to break into a few houses to get the information she required). She had learned almost anything she'd ever need to know about Mada. This made Kerra a little upset. If she'd meant the girl harm, she could easily have figured out how to do so. Apparently, the people here cared little for her.

She'd found out that Mada was an artist, and even the name of her art dealer, but she hadn't produced a single piece in three months. Most people assumed it was connected with the death of her mother (one man theorized that Mada had actually killed her. Kerra had, of course, punched him in the face). She had also learned that she usually left her house in the evenings to visit her mother's grave; maybe for inspiration or maybe just because she missed her.

Kerra crouched lower as she saw Mada exit her house. She waited for three minutes longer until she was sure she was gone, all the while biting firmly on her thumb to keep from squealing in excitement. She found it terribly hard to do anything secretively.

She crept up to the house, moving carefully so as not to disturb the bag slung over her shoulder. Kerra was unsurprised to find all of the windows and doors locked, so she picked up a nearby rock and threw it through the closest window. It was of no matter, the whole place was about to be in a much worse condition that that.

After smashing enough glass in to climb through, Kerra stopped to take a look around. It was a small one room house and fairly kempt. Sketches and paintings were put in neat stacks centered around an easel. A few pencils, paints, and other art supplies were gathered near as well.

She knelt to take a closer look at some of the work; it was very good. Some of it was nature—trees, lakes, animals—but most were of people: smiling, laughing, crying, screaming. Their emotion was captured perfectly. Kerra smiled. Nothing but the best for her crew.

She set to work, carefully removing and arranging the objects in her bag. She spaced the explosives equally around the house, so everything would be completely destroyed. She then gathered all her things up, lit the fuse, and exited through the front door.

-0-0-0-

Mada trudged back to her house, feeling no better than she had when she left. Maybe she would try to draw again when she got home. Her thoughts stopped short at the sound of a loud explosion and a tremor that rippled through the ground. That sounded like it was coming from—oh no.

Mada rushed towards her house, running full out and fearing the worst. She nearly fell over at the sight of it. The whole house was completely covered in flames. There was a large chunk missing out of the roof and a couple of the walls, but what was still there was encased in a fiery blaze. Flames even poured out of the windows. This vision nearly disabled her ability to move, but a thought broke into her head that reestablished it:

"Yes! Mission success!"

She spun in the direction of the thought to see the same girl from earlier that day, bouncing up and down on the balls of her bare feet and grinning her same stupid grin from ear to ear.

Mada charged the girl and grabbed her by the collar of her shirt.

"Why?! What did you do?!" She was far too angry to even attempt to read her mind. Her power was always less effective when she was emotional. The girl rolled her eyes and waved her hand in a "please, you're overreacting" sort of way.

"I blew it up, obviously."

"My art! My art was in there! How could you?"

"Whoa, chill. Your art's fine," Mada looked up and followed the direction the girl's finger was pointing. Piled a few feet away was all of her artwork; she could even see her paints and paintbrushes. She could she the decorated frame of her mother's photo as well.

"Why that? Why not burn that too?!" Mada shook the girl by her shirt collar, the confusion she felt adding to her anger.

"Well, you never said that your art was a reason to stay here. You just said you had a life, a house, and a job."

"What?" Mada asked, "You mean to tell me that you ruined my home so I'd go with you? Did you badmouth me around town or something, too?"

"No," the girl smiled, "from what I gathered, that wasn't necessary. They already seem to dislike you enough."

Mada glared, "You say that like it's a good thing." She sighed, "Let me get this straight: you messed up my life, my home, and my job—"

"Technically, you still have a job, but you won't after your art dealer sees the letter you wrote him."

Mada paled, "And just what did I say in this letter?"

"Oh, some very nasty things about his mother and the sort of inappropriate relationship he holds with her."

"_AND YOU STILL EXPECT ME TO COME WORK FOR YOU?!_" Mada bellowed.

The girl paused a moment in thought then broke out into an even wider smile, "Yep, pretty much!"

Mada let go of the girl's shirt collar and dropped to the ground on all fours. How could everything have gone so horribly wrong? It wasn't really all this girl's fault; she was just a factor. Silent tears began pouring down her face. Suddenly, she felt a hand on her back. She looked up. The other girl was kneeling beside her, smiling sadly with tears on her own cheeks.

"I'm sorry. I never meant to make you cry. I knew that you'd be upset, but I didn't mean to actually hurt you." The girl wrapped her arms around Mada, sniffing. Mada pulled away and looked at the girl. As her head cleared she was able to see into her mind. This sadness was not just a show. It was genuine. She wasn't a _bad_ person, just tactless, and maybe an idiot.

Mada sighed, "Fine."

"Huh?" The girl looked up, mopping tears out of her eyes.

"I'll go with you."

"Really?" She asked, disbelieving.

"Yeah," she grumbled, "I mean it's not like I have anything else to—gah!" Once more, Mada was bowled over in a hug.

"Oh, Mada! I'm so happy! Thankyouthankyouthankyou!"

"Just get off," Mada pushed the girl away. She stood up and brushed herself off. The other girl clambered to her feet. Mada stared for a second, "Well, don't just stand there. My stuff isn't going to move itself to your ship."

The girl threw a smart salute and hurried off, grabbing armfuls of paper. Mada smiled as she watched her. "No, thank you, Kerra."

-0-0-0-

"Oi! Mada! Are you ready?" Kerra called, waving a brown paper bag over her head, "I've got lunch for us, so I'm all set!"

"Patience, Kerra," Mada responded, "I'll be right there," She sat in front of her mother's grave, laying one last offering of her favorite fried shrimp in front of her.

"Sorry, Mom. It's store bought, but I never make it as well as you did anyway. I'm sorry about leaving. It's not as if I really had anything tying me down here after you died, but now I have literally nothing, thanks to Kerra.

"I'll miss you, Mom. Maybe I'll come back someday, but I need to live my own adventure until then. Besides," she smiled slightly at the impatient groan from the girl waiting somewhere behind her, "I don't think Kerra would be able to survive much longer without someone to look out for her." She kissed her index finger and laid it on the headstone, "I love you."

-0-0-0-

"Oh, hey, Mada, there's something I meant to ask you." Kerra said through mouthfuls of the vegetable-meat oddity.

Mada laid her book down as a sign that she had permission to speak. The two girls were relaxing on the deck of Kerra's ship. Mada was sitting with her back to the railing and Kerra was eating while studying a model for a bomb and attempting to steer the Fire Hazard. Mada had already decided not to mention that it wasn't the best idea to multitask those three things together.

"That guy in the restaurant yesterday—what did he think that got you so pissed off?"

Mada smirked, "Oh_ that_,"

"Yeah, _that_. What was it?"

Mada picked up the book again, "Just something about how the girl sitting next to me was a nice piece of ass he'd like to get his hands on. Though his actual thoughts are far too vulgar to convey in words."

"Oh," Kerra went crimson and stuffed more food in her mouth to hide her smile.

-0-0-0-

Mada rolled over in her bunk, unable to sleep. It might have just been the rocking of the ship that kept her awake, but most likely it was the unrelenting weight on her mind. She sighed and sat up.

This room would take some getting used to, but she liked it. It was cramped, but comfortingly so. There was a bookshelf that Mada fully intended to fill before long; there was an overhanging lamp, and even a rug on the floor. Her artwork was sitting in heaps where Kerra had carelessly dumped it. Wait—that was it.

Mada sprang out of bed and grabbed a blank piece of paper. She spread it out on the floor of her cabin and, for the first time in three months, began to draw.


	4. The Last Mate

Disclaimer: One Piece is a work of such brilliance that I shouldn't even be allowed to know of! (I don't own it)

AN: Whew, a long one this time. Thanks to everyone for reading my previous stuff. Especially to **Lieju**, who's been kind enough to review all three chapters so far! I'm thinking that after this chapter there might be one more before we finally get to the good stuff. I'm sorry if it's getting kind of tedious, but I'm really giving character development a shot this time and I don't want to ruin it by jumping into too much plot too soon.

I decided to skip past the interlude between when Mada joins the crew and when Kerra finds Luffy's wanted poster, so this takes place where the first chapter leaves off. If I managed to confuse anyone with any of my scatterbrained plot, please put it in a review so I can hopefully clear it up. In case you haven't noticed, I have a lot of trouble sticking to one POV. Thanks guys!

Strong language this chapter.

Reviews:

**Lieju: **I'm so happy you like Kerra! I'm hoping that I managed to set her apart from Luffy enough in this chapter. I want her to be similar to Luffy, but at the same time not exactly like him. If you catch her being too much like him anywhere, please tell me! And don't worry; I've got some stuff up my sleeve to keep Mada's power from getting too predictable. I love reviews like yours so much because you tell me exactly what's good and bad. It really gives me something to work with and helps to keep my characters and ego in check. Thanks so much!

**Jarofdirtpirate: **I'm glad you liked it. I know it may not be completely logical for Mada to go with Kerra, but I thought it would be a good start to shaping her character. Thanks for the review(s)!

**Mr. Pudgems: **Imploded your . . . stomach? Can't say I can really make heads or tails of that statement, but it's great that you thought it was funny! I may not always achieve it, but I hope to get at least one laugh per chapter, so it means a lot to me that you thought it was!

-0-0-0-

"Madaaaa!" Kerra whined as she flopped over the railing of the ship dramatically, "_Why_ are we stopping here?"

The two girls had stopped at a small island. It probably held no more than one or two sparsely populated villages. Mada had already disembarked and was heading to the nearest open market she could see. She sighed as she repeated herself for the umpteenth time.

"We need to stock up on food because we are dangerously low and could die without it. And there is very little possibility of us coming back to life." She made sure to cover all points even slightly relevant to the topic.

"Yeah, but what about Luffy? His trail will get cold!"

"Kerra, listen, this is the best we can do. Commi is all the way in the East Blue, so we've got a long way to go. We need food. The restocking will go much faster if you will get off your lazy ass and help. The faster we do this, the faster we can get back to following Luffy."

"Fine," Kerra scraped herself up and hopped over the side of the ship, "Let's get this over with."

Ten minutes later, Kerra had all but forgotten about Monkey D. Luffy.

"Ooh! Mada, can we get some of these?" She asked holding a sweet bun up to her companion.

"No," Mada replied without looking up from inspecting oranges, "I may not know a lot about food, but we need stuff with nutritional value. Think fruit and meat."

"'Kay," Kerra grumbled as she turned around to inspect another food stand, "What about thi—yah!" Kerra was knocked off her feet as a driving force smashed into her back. She groaned and tried to sit up, only to find that there was something heavy and restraining on top of her. It was boy.

"Hey!" Kerra exclaimed, rolling over to get the boy off, "What's the big idea?" She jammed her fist into the top of his head, "Watch where you're going, asshole!"

"Kerra, he's just a kid," Mada reprimanded as he scrambled up and ran to hide behind Mada.

"Aren't you a little old to be pulling that crap?" Kerra asked, "'Ahh, hide me! She's scary!' What are you, some kinda sissy?" She jeered. The boy narrowed his deep blue eyes menacingly. He had silver hair and was wearing an oversized T-shirt that hung around his knees. His pants were also too large for him and his sandals were heavily patched and mended in a lot of places.

"I'm not a sissy!" The boy yelled back fiercely, even dangerously, "That hurt!"

"It wouldn't have hurt if you weren't such a sissy!"

The boy glared, "_I'm not_—eh?" he looked up at a touch on the top of his head, coincidentally on just the spot that Kerra had hit. Mada smiled down at him.

"Don't try to argue with her. It's not worth the headache," Mada plucked a sweet bun off the cart Kerra had previously examined, gave the attendant a silver Belli, and handed the bun to the boy. "Sorry about her, okay? Now go on." She gave the boy's shoulder a little push and he scampered off.

"Oh, fine! He gets a sweet bun!" Kerra shoved her hands into the pockets of her shorts, "Honestly, Mada I—Ah! My wallet! That little shit stole my money!" Kerra tried to take off after the little thief, but stopped at a hand on her shoulder.

"Let him go." Mada said softly.

"What! Let him go? Are you insane?"

"Kids don't steal for no reason," she glanced sadly after the boy, "And that one has a big reason."

"Waitwaitwaitwaitwait," Kerra shrugged away from Mada's hand, "You read his mind? And you let him get away with that?!"

"I told you, Kerra. He has his reasons."

"That was _all_ my money!"

Mada's mouth fell open, "What?"

"All. My. Money—Everything!"

"Why would you _do_ that?!"

"Why would _you_ let him get away?!"

"Because I didn't—damn it, Kerra! Why did you have to bring all of it with you?" Mada cried, exasperated.

"I like to have all my stuff in one place. That way, I remember where everything is."

"And make it much easier for a thief to steal!" Mada closed her eyes and exhaled sharply, massaging her temples, "Look, yelling isn't helping anything. Let's just go get it back. But before that, we need to talk. We are going to handle this rationally. This is a very delicate situation. You hear me, Kerra? Kerra?" Mada looked around for the other girl, but she had been gone at the word "go".

-0-0-0-

The boy rubbed the red spot on his cheek, trying desperately to sniff back the tears.

"Good job, Hiko," his father said, flipping the wad of cash between his fat fingers. He was a thick-necked, red-faced man. A disciplined lifestyle would have seen him as an athlete, but drinking and smoking had sent his body growing more in mass than strength. However, his girth served an effective purpose in the street brawling he often engaged in.

Despite how pleased he was with his son now, he had struck him across the face only moments earlier. The man was perpetually drunk and it often took only the sight of his son to send him flying into a rage.

"We might just be able to get out of debt this time. Doesn't that make you happy, boy?"

"Yes, sir." Hiko responded from his position against the far wall. He felt safest out of his father's reach. He sniffed.

"What? Are you crying?" The man stoop up and began loosing his belt, "How many times have I told you there will be _NO CRYING IN THIS HOUSE!"_

He began whipping the boy repeatedly, only laughing when Hiko began sobbing, "Are you a girly boy? A pansy? A sissy?!"

"I'm not a sissy!" Hiko shook with the force of his tears.

"Hold it right there, Pops!"

All action ceased. The boy's father froze in mid swing, belt hanging loosely in his hand. Hiko himself was stunned into silence. In the doorway was young girl.

"Listen, buddy, you have something that belongs to me and I want it back." Kerra held her hand out expectantly, her face stony and serious.

"Something . . . that belongs . . . to you?" The man asked, puzzled.

"Yeah! My money!"

"Your—oh! Your money. Right." A sly look crossed the man's face. He dropped the belt and stepped closer to her. "You know, instead of returning it to you, I could compensate you for it." He pressed his arm up against her, snaking his hand towards her chest. He found his mark and covered her breast with his hand, squeezing slightly.

Kerra slapped his arm casually, causing him to withdraw. "No thank you. You will give me my money now and you will never touch me again. I wouldn't normally make such a big deal, but I need this money, got me?"

"Listen, girly, I don't think you know who you're messin' with." He said, growing angry.

"No, you listen to me, old man!" Kerra yelled, becoming suddenly violent, "You don't know who _you're _messing with and you will give me back what's mine right now!" She reached into her back pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. She then slapped it to his forehead.

"What the—!"

"Shut up," Kerra said coldly and flicked the paper, causing an explosion. The man fell back, unconscious. Kerra took this opportunity to dig into his pocket and retrieve her money.

"Kerra—what did—oh god. Are you okay?" Mada jumped breathlessly from thought to thought, having finally caught up with Kerra. She spotted the boy huddled in the corner, still shaking. "Is _he_ okay?"

"I'm alright," Kerra grinned around the charred finger stuck in her mouth, "That attack always hurts my nail, though."

Mada wasn't paying attention anymore. She was sitting next to the boy, examining the gashes on his back.

"Look at these scars," She thought aloud, "This happens to you a lot, doesn't it?" The boy nodded fearfully. "Can you stand? If not, I'll carry you. We have to get you bandaged up."

"No! My dad will—" Mada placed her hand over his mouth.

"He won't do anything to you anymore." She pressed the boy against her in a hug, careful to avoid touching the wounds on his back, "We'll look after you. Come on," Mada scooped him up and cradled him, carrying him off.

"I got the money back," Kerra offered meekly to Mada's retreating back.

-0-0-0-

"Where's the kid?" Kerra asked, now aboard the Fire Hazard. Mada had just walked on deck from her cabin.

"Sleeping. I bandaged his back; none of the cuts were too deep," She sighed, "That poor boy. Do you know he's only seven years old?"

"Yeah, great," Kerra replied perfunctorily, "Why did you take him with you anyway? He'll only cause trouble."

Mada frowned, "You would have had me leave him there?"

"Yes! It's his life, it's his dad, it's his problem! Why'd you have to go and make it ours?"

Mada shook her head in disbelief. How could a girl who had been so sympathetic for her be so hardhearted towards a boy in such need?

"In any case," Kerra sighed, "You make sure to keep a close read on his thoughts to make sure he doesn't rip us off again."

"No."

"What?"

"I'm not going to do that. His thoughts belong to him. I'm not going to read his mind at all, if I can help it. It's an invasion of privacy and he doesn't deserve it."

"Whatever," Kerra grouched, turning to leave, "I'm going to go finish the shopping. He'd better be gone when I get back."

-0-0-0-

Hiko stood at the doorway, leaving it only slightly ajar so he could see and her the two girls on deck. The annoying one wanted him gone, huh? That usually wouldn't have been a problem for him. He didn't need to stay where he wasn't wanted. But the other girl . . .

Hiko watched her as she leaned on the railing, staring off into space. He wondered what she was thinking about. Everything about her, her waist length, wavy, dark brown hair, her kind smile and gentle touch, and more especially, her deep blue eyes, just like his, reminded him of his mother. She was exactly like his mother had been before his father had . . .

It didn't matter anyway. It looked like the other girl wasn't going to allow him stay. He returned to Mada's bed defeated.

-0-0-0-

Kerra lounged back in the chair at the bar, sipping on someone's unattended beer. Though she was sixteen, she looked younger and it was hard to get alcohol sometimes. Several bags full of fruit and vegetables and meat and cheese lay at her feet. She'd even bought a cheap fishing rod and some bait for catching fish if they ran low on food. Certainly Mada would praise her for her thoughtfulness and foresight.

Kerra took another swig of her beer. That is, Mada _would_ praise her if she weren't too busy fussing over that kid. Just who did he think he was? He wasn't helpless. He should have just run away a long time ago and saved Kerra the trouble of ever having to meet him.

She chugged the rest of the ale and reached for the next mug on the table, but it was yanked out of her arm's length before her fingers closed around it.

"Like to drink, do you, girly?"

Kerra looked up groggily into the face of the same red-faced man from earlier that day, though much of his face was now stained black from her explosive. He lifted the almost-full mug to his lips and drained it in one gulp. Kerra thought that maybe drinking hadn't been such a good idea; she didn't hold her liquor very well.

Suddenly, the man lunged forward and grabbed her by her upper arms, lifting her bodily out of the chair.

"Where is my son?" He growled.

"You want him back?" Kerra slurred, "You can have him! There's no room for him on my ship anyway!"

"Your _ship_, huh?" The same sly smile he had given Kerra before appeared on his face.

"Oops."

"Good night, girly," He said before smashing his head into hers and knocking her out cold.

-0-0-0-

Mada sat next to the boy on the edge of the bed.

"You little opossum," she teased.

The boy sat up and stared, wide-eyed, "What?"

"Opossum," Mada smiled, "They like to lie very still and pretend to be dead to avoid predators. That's what you were doing just now with pretending to be asleep."

"I know that," the boy blushed, "It's just my mom used to say the same thing all the time," He blushed deeper, "Um, I never asked, but what's your name?"

"Mada. What's yours?"

"Hiko."

"Hiko," she tried, "Well, Hiko, I wouldn't worry about Kerra if I were you. I don't think she'd really turn you away."

"Wha—?"

"Weren't you eavesdropping earlier?"

"Oh," Hiko looked down, shamefaced, "You read my mind? Can you really do that? Read minds?"

"Mm-hmm," Mada nodded, "Sure can. But I didn't read your mind just now. You weren't really sleeping, so it only makes sense that you'd be listening in on other peoples' conversations instead. But if you were really paying attention, you should have known that I wouldn't read your mind. I said I wouldn't."

"You meant that?"

"Every word."

Hiko's blush returned to his cheeks, "Then I guess you won't . . . ?" he trailed off.

Mada laughed. Hiko looked up. It was the same laugh that would escape his mother's lips so often. He always felt like he was the most important person on earth when he made her laugh.

"You want me to?" She asked. Hiko nodded bashfully. "You're thinking about your mom." Mada's smile left, "Or me. I can't tell which." She looked down, "I won't read your mind anymore if you don't want me to. I don't want to hear anything you want to—"

"No!" Hiko interrupted, shooting upwards and standing on the bed. Mada jumped. "Er, I mean," Hiko sat back down. "Anything you want to hear is fine."

Mada smiled again, "You know, my mom—"

"HIKOOO!"

The blood drained from Hiko's face, "Dad."

"Stay here, Hiko," Mada said, standing up and grabbing a belt slung over the headboard of her bed. She looped it around her waist. "I'll deal with this."

-0-0-0-

"HIKO! WHERE ARE YOU! COME HOME, YOU LITTLE SON OF A BITCH!" He was stomping around the harbor, shouting at the top of his lungs, unmistakably hammered.

"Well being as he's your son, I guess I he really is, isn't he?!" Mada called, standing atop the railing of the Fire Hazard.

The man wheeled around and marched towards Mada, jabbing his pointer finger at her accusingly, "You with that little bitch? You give my son back, you whore!"

Mada scowled contemptuously, "Name calling. Charming," she brushed a stray lock of hair out of her face, "I'm not giving him back to you. He won't be abused by you anymore."

"That's not your choice, you piece of shit pirate! He's my son and you can't—ahh!" He doubled over, clutching his right calf.

"Shut your mouth," Mada pulled another knife out of her belt and jumped off the railing onto the dock, "Or next time, I won't just hit your leg."

"You fucking bitch!" He screamed, wrenching the knife out of his leg, "You better get that fucker out here or I'll—augh!" This time Mada's knife hit it's mark in the soft underside of his elbow.

"Don't talk. It causes pain to you and everyone around you."

"You—," he yanked the knife out of his elbow, "What right do you have to take him away from me? Why should you care what happens to him?"

"Because," Mada removed yet another knife, "I heard his pain. I can't ignore it. And no," She flicked the knife in his direction, "You don't get to run away."

"How did you . . . ?" He sat in stunned silence, too surprised to even scream at the fact that his hand was now pinned to the dock by the knife that pierced it. He had tried to get up and run, but had managed to get no further than to turn over and place his hands on the ground to push himself.

"Did I forget to mention that I can hear your thoughts?" Mada smirked, "There are so few in your head it's easy to pick out the significant ones."

"Mada!"

She whirled around at the sound of her name. Hiko was leaning over the railing, staring down in distress.

"I know he deserves it, but don't kill him!" he yelled, "I want to pay him back myself for what he's done to me. And for what he did to my mom!"

The man on the ground chucked as he unstuck his hand, "You still going on about that? Aw, look, you're crying! You fucking sissy,"

"I'm not a sissy!" Hiko screamed.

He laughed again, "Much braver up there, aren't you? Where I can't hurt you? Feh. You're just like she was: a coward till the end,"

"She wasn't a coward!" Hiko shrieked, eyes wild, "She was so much braver than you could ever be!"

Mada grimaced. The ferocity of Hiko's thoughts was piercing her brain. She couldn't hear anything but his pain.

"She was beautiful and kind and you took her away from me!" Hiko continued, tears leaking out of the corners of his eyes. The implication that his mother was anything less than a hero had sent him over the edge, "You killed her, you bastard! You killed her!"

Mada shoved the heels of her hands into her temples, trying desperately to keep the noise out. That was when Hiko's father took his chance. He threw himself at her, driving her own knife into her side. The two toppled off the dock and into the water.

-0-0-0-

"Ehh . . ." Kerra sat up, rubbing the lump on her forehead, now completely sober.

"Hey kid, you okay?" the bartender was standing over her, looking concerned, "Kano's an asshole, but I never thought he'd take it out on some random girl. You were out for a while so you might have a concuss—Ah! I wouldn't standup if I were you."

Kerra stumbled to her feet. "Ooh, that jackass is gonna pay for this. Now where did he . . . Ohmygod! Mada!" Kerra took off running.

"Wait! You can't go!" The bartender yelled after her.

"And just why is that?!" She yelled back.

"You forgot your bags!"

"Oh." Kerra returned to grab her things and then took off for real.

-0-0-0-

"Mada!" Hiko cried, all but throwing himself off the ship, frantically scanning the surface of the water for any sign of her.

"Where is she?" Kerra called up to him, arriving after a full speed dash across town.

"My dad and her fell in! It's been like five minutes and she hasn't come up!"

"Why didn't you go save her?!"

"I can't swim!"

"You can't—," Kerra smacked a hand to her forehead, forgetting about the bump, "Ow, jeez!" She ran her fingers over it tenderly for a second longer before dropping the bags on the dock and jumping into the water with a mutter of "Do I have to do everything around here?"

Kerra pushed deeper into the water, searching for a glimpse of the girl. The saltwater stung her eyes, but that wasn't important. Mada was. Kerra just hoped that the old man wasn't anywhere near.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mada's mess of brown hair. The water around her was tinted red and the girl was sinking further.

_Dammit_, Kerra though. She wasn't the most proficient swimmer and she wasn't sure she had the strength to drag Mada back up to the surface with only two or three of her limbs available for swimming.

_Forgive me, Mada_, Kerra prayed as she reached her and did the only thing she could think to do. She grabbed Mada by the hair and used every bit of power she had to propel them both back up.

-0-0-0-

Mada woke with a start, automatically reaching down to grab a knife from her belt to protect herself. But her belt wasn't there. She was in her bed in her room on the Fire Hazard.

"Whoa, easy.'

Mada looked down to see Kerra sitting on the rug next to her bed using one of the ink pens she used for her contemporary pieces to doodle on her own skin.

"Give me that!" Mada leaned over and grabbed the pen away from her, "Those things are expensive, you know!"

"You like it?" Kerra asked showing her drawing to her. It was a replica of the jolly roger displayed on the sail.

"It's very nice. How long have I been asleep for?"

"Meh. A few hours. I was worried." Kerra pointed to Mada's side, "I'm not too familiar with the human anatomy, but I'd say that wound was just a couple of inches away from a vital organ. I think it was all that water you swallowed that knocked you out, though. It took a lot of pumping to get you to spit it all up. Why didn't you tell me that you couldn't swim?"

Mada stared confusedly. "I thought you knew."

"Why would I know?"

"I ate a Devil Fruit. The Eeto Eeto no Mi. That's why I can read minds."

"What!" Kerra shot to her feet.

"Sorry," Mada stared down to study her knees, "I know it's a big handicap on a pirate ship. I'd understand if you didn't want—"

"That is so COOL!" Kerra exclaimed, "I've got a Devil Fruit user for a Nakama! An honest-to-god Devil Fruit user!" Mada smiled, she should have been expecting this.

"Hey hold on. Where's Hiko?" She looked around as if she expected him to be hiding behind the bookshelf.

"Oh, him?" Kerra stopped jumping around in excitement, "I sent him home. I couldn't find his old man anywhere, so I guess he drowned."

Mada frowned disapprovingly, "You can't just 'send him home.' How do you expect him to take care of himself?"

"Who cares? _I'm_ sure as hell not gonna take care of him."

"Hey!" A voice called from outside, "Hey guys! Mada! Where are you?!"

"What the hell?" Kerra asked, heading to the door. Mada followed.

"Awww!" Kerra slumped against the doorway when she spotted Hiko on board, "Didn't I tell you to go home already?"

"Sure. But why should I listen to you?" The boy grinned, blue eyes sparkling happily, "You both are just girls and you need a man to protect you around her anyway." He crossed his arms over his chest and nodded solemnly.

Mada laughed, Hiko grinned, and Kerra nearly fell over with an angry outburst.

"What?! Oh no! I don't think so!" Kerra spotted a bag full to bursting sitting behind Hiko, "Is that your _stuff_? No! You can just take that bag and go back to where you belong!"

"Why don't you try to make me?" Hiko stuck his tongue out, "I want to join this crew. I'd like to see you stop me!"

"I will! Know why? 'Cause I'm captain and I say that—"

"I think it's a great idea." Mada beamed.

"Huh!" this time, Kerra did fall over.

"Ha! Thank you, Mada!" Hiko declared victoriously.

"Madaaaa!" Kerra wailed, crawling over to the other girl and grabbing the hem of her shirt pleadingly. "What are you _saying_?"

"I think it's a great idea," she repeated, smiling at Hiko, "Besides, where else do you have to go, right?"

"Right!" Hiko agreed readily.

"But Mada!" Kerra whined, "I'm captain!"

"Fine," Mada placed her hand on her waist and turned away indifferently, "Pull rank on me. Be that way if that's the kind of person you are. To think that I thought so highly of you. I suppose I'll just have to quit. I can't imagine being first mate to someone so heartless and cruel."

"Come on, Mada. I—" Mada held up a hand to silence her. Kerra let of her shirt and fell back on her butt. She sighed and turned to Hiko, "Fine! You can stay!" She climbed tiredly to her feet. She stomped forward and shoved her finger into his face, "But you're last mate, got that? I don't care how many people join this crew, you are _last mate_!"

Hiko was about to open his mouth to protest, but Mada pressed a finger to her lips and winked. Hiko smiled.

"That's fine," he shrugged, "Last mate on_ your_ crew doesn't really mean much more than anything else on this ship. I mean, look at the captain."

"You little," Kerra ground her teeth in irritation, "I'll show you what this captain can do!" She swiped at his head and missed. Hiko ducked low and slammed his head into her stomach. Kerra doubled over, coughing and clutching her center.

"I'm gonna get you!" she rasped.

"I'm soo scared, too. Miss I-can't-even-beat-a-kid-half-my-size is going to hurt me!" He taunted.

"You—ack!" Kerra had tried to get up and had fallen flat on her face.

Mada laughed. Well, at least now there was no chance of getting bored.

-0-0-0-

"Mada, I'm bored!" Kerra complained, stretched out on her back on deck. She had a book open on her chest; one of Mada's. She'd tried reading it, but books had never held her attention well.

Mada was at the helm, map open next to her, steering a course for Commi Island. "Kerra, this is very distracting. Go see if Hiko wants to do something."

"I can't. He's asleep."

"So go wake him up!" She snapped, "Trust me, any noise you two could make would be far less annoying than your boredom."

"Okay, I guess I can—" Kerra stopped short. A light came into her eyes and her face brightened. "Mada! Drop the anchor!"

"What? Why? What about Luffy?"

"You'll see! Just do it!" She yelled, hurrying below deck to yank Hiko out of bed. Mada sighed and did as she was told.

"What're you _doing_, you psycho!" Hiko yelled as Kerra pulled him on deck by his wrist, "I was sleeping!"

"I'm gonna teach you how to swim!" Kerra grinned back at him.

"What! No. No way, I'm going back to bed," He tore his wrist out of Kerra's grasp.

"What? Are you still such a sissy?" Kerra poked him in the back of the head. Hiko stopped and turned back to face the other girl, who was smirking confidently. For some reason, the nickname didn't bother him as much anymore.

He smirked back. Mada was watching, and, at the very least, he was going to prove himself to her. Maybe he would even be able to hear her laugh.

"Of course not!" He declared, hopping over the railing and plunging into the ocean. Kerra dove after him, ready to bring him back to the surface if he went under.

-0-0-0-

AN: Eeto – sound made when thinking.


	5. Journey's Start

Disclaimer: One Piece is a work of such brilliance that I shouldn't even be allowed to know of! (I don't own it)

AN: Well, I had craptastic time with this chapter. I finally got it to work, but I'm still not completely happy with it. I had originally intended to have another chapter before this one, which was mostly background for Mada and Hiko, but it was short and mushed together. I thought that they deserved more than a pint-sized chapter for their flashbacks. Also, I need to keep those in my back pocket for the next time I get writers block. Eheheh. I really wish I could have done more with canon characters in this chapter, but I don't think Nojiko's big enough. I hope that the canon people will have more instrumental parts in the coming chapters.

Thanks to **Bunny the Assassin** for the encouragement with my block with this chapter.

Also, **_VERY_ _IMPORTANT!!!!_** I'm dumb. I drew Hiko before I wrote him and gave him his age based on the drawing. Hence why he is so young. But I'm changing it so he's nine now. I really feel bad about going back on it, but seven just doesn't work for him; it's too young. Thank you Alamandor for telling me about it before it was too late to fix it!

Reviews:

**Mr. 4: **Heehee. Short but sweet. Thanks!

**Mr. Pudgems:** Ooh! Thank you! And, uh, no. I don't want to disappoint, but I don't think that Kerra will be meeting Luffy for a while (and definitely not this chapter). Sorry . . .

**Alamandor:** This was a great review! I got the male version of a fangirl squeak! I'm so happy you liked it! –slaps forehead- Aw, god! Hiko! I really should have paid more attention! I sort of just created him so Kerra would have someone to fight with and Mada would have someone other than Kerra to talk to. Stupid, stupid, stupid! Thanks so much for bringing it to my attention! Well, I can't do anything about it now, but I'll come up with something. I'll make that kid interesting if it's the last thing I do! Thanks again, so helpful!

**Lieju: **Your reviews _always _make sense! I love to get them. –smile- I _was_ thinking about giving Mada abilities similar to Miss Goldenweek, but I really didn't want to do that because it had already been done. And, my God, you are good. That is exactly what I was going for with Kerra! I'm so glad you got it and I'm especially happy that you like her. I'm just trying to keep Kerra as far away from a Mary-Sue as I possibly can, and making her imperfect is just the way to go about it. Thanks so much!

**Jarofdirtpirate: **"Swish". That's a good word for it! With Kerra around, I'm afraid that Mada might seem like a bit of a hard-ass, but she's really a nice person! I'm glad you like her!

**lordwhatucallit:** Thanks a lot! Great screen name!

-0-0-0-

"Hiko! Mada!" Kerra shouted excitedly, "Wakeupwakeupwakeup!" Kerra had been up all night at the helm, as it was her turn to take the watch that night, making sure the ship stayed on course. It was dawn and just as the first light was coming into the sky, she had spotted a speck of land that could only be Commi Island.

"I see it she yelled, determined o rouse her Nakama without moving from her spot, "We're here! I see Comm—Ow!" Something heavy landed on her head. It was the newspaper, which Mada had insisted on having delivered. This made absolutely no sense to Kerra. Important news would find its may to them on its own. Besides which, she had no idea how the delivery bird managed to find the ship everyday, anyhow.

She grudgingly sat down and untied to string around the newspaper. As it unrolled, a piece of paper fell out. A wanted poster! Kerra grabbed it eagerly; anxious to see what pirate had a bound on his head now. She turned to paper over . . . and screamed.

Hiko and Mada rushed on deck. Mada held her knife belt in one hand and one of her knives in the other. Hiko was armed with one of Mada's heavy tomes, having taken to sleeping against Mada's bookshelf to "protect her".

"Kerra! What is it?" Mada rushed over to check the girl over for any visible wounds.

"L-look," Kerra held the poster up to Mada, hand trembling. Mada took the poster and studied it confusedly.

"Is this a joke or something?" She asked, peering over the top of the poster and Kerra. It was then she noticed that Kerra's face was in an all-out smile. Her mouth was open in excited amazement, her eyes were nearly closed with the effort of her smile, and her cheeks were bright red, even her _nose_ looked ecstatic.

"No joke!" She squealed breathlessly, "You have a bounty!"

Mada looked the poster over carefully. It was certainly her likeness. The scene seemed to be that of the ship. She was looking into space and chewing on the end of a paintbrush. Below the picture were the words "Mada", "14,000,000 Belli", and (most concerning) "Dead or Alive." Hiko stared over her shoulder, mouth agape.

"Let me read it to you! Let me read it to you!" Kerra exclaimed, ripping the newspaper open. "It says here that 'Blood Ink Mada is wanted for the kidnapping of seven-year-old Hiko and the supposed murder of his father. It is unclear how many children she has previously kidnapped or how many more she intends to kidnap. However, we can be certain that she intends to corrupt these children and possibly even form a fleet manned entirely by young one.' Jeez, they give you way too much credit," Kerra turned the paper upside down and shook it, "Now, where's mine?"

Nothing fell out. Kerra continued to shake it, refusing to acknowledge that the law of gravity hade personally snubbed her. She finally let the paper drop out of her hands and turned to look up at Mada. She seemed about to cry.

"I don't have one, do I?" she asked. Mada looked piteously upon her and shook her head. Even Hiko didn't have the will to make fun of her. Kerra slowly got to her feet, but her head remained floor facing. Her Nakama could see her tears falling onto the deck.

"I'm going to go to sleep," She mumbled, moving towards her cabin, dragging her feet along the ground, "Wake me when we get there." She slammed the door behind her.

"God," Hiko marveled, "I've never seen her like this before. I didn't even know this was a possible mood option,"

"I haven't either," Mada responded, "Maybe it's because she hasn't had any sleep. You know she gets cranky when she's on night watch."

"Maybe," Hiko sighed, but neither of them really believed it.

-0-0-0-

"Kerra?" Mada knocked softly on her captain's door, "We're here. You want to go get something to eat?" She heard the bed creak as Kerra got up. She opened the door and merely stared at Mada. It was apparent that she hadn't been sleeping. Her eyes were bloodshot and there were dried tears on her cheeks.

"Are you okay? Do you want us to bring you back something instead?" Kerra nodded slowly, twice, then shut the door. Mada turned to Hiko and put a smile on, "Well, don't let her mood get you down. We've got some shopping to do."

"We do?" he asked, confused.

"Of course we do. What sort of Nakama would we be if we let you walk around wearing that?" She indicated to his shabby and oversized attire, "Besides, you don't know how to fight yet, do you? I'm sure we can find you a suitable weapon, right?"

-0-0-0-

Hiko proudly fingered the short sword at his side. Mada had said that she didn't think the sword would really be a fitting weapon, but it was closest to what she knew. Starting him out this way would make it easier to teach him to fight while they figured out his ideal weapon. He looked up as the waitress arrived with their food. Before she left, Mada caught her by the arm.

"Excuse me, you would happen to know Monkey D. Luffy, do you?"

"Monkey D . . .? Oh! Luffy! Of course I know Luffy!" She positively beamed.

"You do?" Mada was a little surprised at such a strong and clearly happy response, "Is he still here?"

"No, sorry. You just missed him. He left a few days ago."

"Damn," Mada cursed quietly, "Do you have any idea where he went?"

"Mmm," She looked up at the ceiling thoughtfully, "No, I don't. But Nojiko might. Her sister, Nami, is in his crew."

"Great," Mada sighed thankfully, "Do you think you could give us directions to her house?"

"Sure thing, doll," the waitress winked, "Just let me take care of my other tables."

"That was helpful, huh?" Mada asked, turning to Hiko once she had left. He cocked his head to the side.

"Why'd you do that?" He asked. He had patiently listened to the preceding conversation, but something was bothering him.

"Do what?"

"Why'd you have to ask her? Couldn't you have just read her mind?"

Mada took a bite of her fish and chewed it over, contemplating how to word this. "It's not healthy." She said finally.

"Healthy?"

"Yeah, I learned the hard way that sometimes you don't want to know what other people are thinking. It can really hurt you inside if you hear something you were never meant to hear."

"Like what?" Hiko pressed.

"Like personal thoughts, things that can't be expressed in words, sick fantasies, and even hurtful things about yourself. I don't really like to do it unless I think the person is concentrating on something specific." She paused for a moment, "Also, it would have been really unnecessary to read her mind anyway. You saw how willing she was to give out information."

"But what if she hadn't been?" He refused to let it go. Since Mada had the ability, why not use it?

"I'm sure if she hadn't been so amiable, we could have found someone who was. If we really needed something, then I wouldn't hesitate. That's my policy and I seldom break it." She took a sip of her tea, clearly indicating an end to that particular topic.

Hiko nodded, though he clearly did not agree.

"Eat up," Mada said kindly, "We'll go get Kerra and then head over to see Nojiko."

-0-0-0-

"Monkey D. Luffy," Kerra repeated, holding his wanted poster up for emphasis. Apparently she had found one of the less willing residents of Cocoyashi.

"Who's asking?" the man at the fruit stand inquired, narrowing his eyes suspiciously at her. Kerra jabbed her thumb at her face belligerently. "And just who are you, exactly?"

"Kerra." She replied tersely. She was definitely not in the mood.

"Listen, girl. If you really want to know so bad, then why don't you—"

"Harassing customers again?" A woman with blue hair approached, carrying an armload of oranges. She had a decorative tattoo snaking up her arm an across her chest, "You'll never make sales that way."

"Hah. I'm the one being harassed. Just give me one more second to finish up here." The man turned back to Kerra, "You done?"

"No," Kerra scowled, "I just want to know if you know where Monkey D. Luffy went. Is it really that hard for you?" She was about ready to punch him the face.

"Luffy?" questioned the blue-haired woman. She looked carefully at Kerra, trying to size her up. "Definitely not a marine," she remarked, "You better come with me."

-0-0-0-

"So you're a pirate then?" Nojiko asked, setting a sup of coffee in from of Kerra.

"Yup," Kerra sighed. Normally, she would have launched into a rambling monologue about herself, her ship, her past, her future, her dreams, and anything else that came to mind, but she had no desire to disclose anything without the proper prompting . . .

"What do you want to find Luffy for?" . . . and Nojiko had just stumbled across it. Kerra could feel her trademark grin returning to her lips.

"I saw his wanted poster and I just—I don't know—I just really wanted to fight him!"

"Fight him?" Nojiko seemed a little taken aback, "Luffy's no pushover, you know. He beat—"

"Yeah, Arlong, I know," Kerra interrupted, "I know it won't be an easy fight, but I don't think I could ever be comfortable being pirate king if I didn't go through Luffy to get it?"

"You, uh, want to be Pirate _King_?" Nojiko quirked an eyebrow.

Kerra let a jaunty smile replace her grin, "I know I may not look it, but I'm pretty strong."

"No, it's not that, it's—" Nojiko eyed the girl's face and found herself smiling along with her, "Never mind. Listen, I have an idea. Before I tell you where Luffy went, you have to pay Arlong Park a visit. Once you see that, if you still want to fight him, I'll tell you everything I know."

"Deal!" Kerra stuck out her hand, beaming madly.

"Deal," Nojiko repeated as she took her hand.

-0-0-0-

"She's not below deck, either!" Hiko called up to Mada. They were both searching the ship wildly for any sign of their captain. Mada plopped down in her chair on deck and buried her face in her hands.

"Where could she be?" She groaned. Hiko came up from the lower level of the ship and issued a sigh.

"You don't think she . . .?" he looked dubiously over the side of the ship and into the sea below. Mada glanced up and followed Hiko's gaze.

"Don't think she—No!" she yelled defiantly, then bit her lower lip, "No. She – she wouldn't . . . would she?"

"I don't know," Hiko responded, " I don't know her that well. You've known her longer."

"Maybe she just got hungry," Mada tried to convince herself, "So she went into town and—"

"Hey guys!" Mada and Hiko looked up to see Kerra running toward the Fire Hazard waving her arm above her head frantically, "Mada, weigh anchor! We're bringing the ship around the island to Arlong Park!"

"Kerra?!" Mada cried, "Were where you? Are you alright?!"

"Never better," she quipped, scaling the side of the ship, "Why? How're you?"

Mada shook her head in disbelief. Had Kerra really forgotten about that morning? No. She had just found something that overshadowed it completely.

"Hiko, put the sail down," Kerra commanded, "That is, unless you can't reach, sissy boy." She stuck her tongue out and winked.

"Shut up!" He stuck his tongue out in return, pulling down his lower eyelid, nonetheless doing as she wished, "Bi-polar, psychotic bitch," He grumbled.

"Why do we need to go to Arlong Park?" asked Mada, joining Kerra at the helm.

"Just read my mind," Kerra told her, eyes darting back and forth from the map to the span of land and sea ahead of them, "I'm too excited to speak in complete sentences."

"It's okay," Mada smiled, "If you're too excited to speak, your thoughts are probably just a jumbled mess."

Kerra laughed, "Got that right!" She looked up. "Hiko! Swallow your pride and ask for a stepstool! We can't be kept waiting!"

"Just shut up!" he yelled.

"Mada, go help him."

"Aye, captain." She really did like this incoherent Kerra so much better.

-0-0-0-

"Holy . . ." Kerra gaped in awe at what once was the base of the famous Fish-man. "It's been razed to the ground," she mused.

"Luffy did this?" Mada asked.

Kerra nodded, "That's what Nojiko said."

"Where're all the Fish-men?" Hiko wondered aloud, looking around.

"The marines got them. They were pirates, after all." Kerra responded, trying to drink in the view in front of her.

The former building was little more than a pile of rubble. It had clearly been split down the middle. Though it may have been possible that Arlong had inflicted some of that damage, Kerra knew it was Luffy. Nojiko wouldn't have sent them if she was looking at the result of Arlong's power. This was what Luffy could do.

"And you wanna _fight_ this guy?" Hiko grimaced.

"That's right." Kerra smiled as she stepped towards the building. She had to touch it.

"You're gonna get your ass kicked!" Hiko blurted.

"Hiko!" Mada scolded. "Don't say that! And don't cuss."

"No." Kerra had stopped in her tracks. "No, he's right, Mada." Hiko and Mada exchanged a glance. They were both sure she would revert into her mood from that morning. "If I fight Luffy, I will lose horribly. I could do this kind of damage to something with bombs, but never with my fists."

"Kerra—" Mada began.

"That's why . . . That's why I'm gonna," She sniffed and brought her arm to her face to wipe her tears.

"Kerra, don't—"

Kerra spun around to face her Nakama, grinning joyously, tears pouring down her face. "That's why I'm gonna get stronger! We're gonna do this! We're gonna go and this is where we start! This is where The Explode Pirates start their adventure!"

"The Explode Pirates?" Hiko raised his eyebrows, a look of disgust quickly forming on his face. He had missed the entire point of Kerra's would-be inspirational speech.

"Yeah!" Kerra wiped more tears from her eyes, "That's what I've named us. Cool, huh?"

"Are you kidding me? It's—!"

"Perfect." Mada placed her hand over Hiko's mouth.

-0-0-0-

"Your Nakama?" Nojiko asked upon Kerra's return.

"Yup! This is Mada and the kid's name is Hiko. They're pleased to meet you. Now, as promised: Luffy. Tell me everything." She shoved her way inside, "We'll discuss it over dinner. I haven't eaten a thing all day and I'm famished!" She plopped down in a seat at Nojiko's table.

"Kerra," Mada covered her eyes with hand, as if doing so would lessen her horror at the rude behavior.

"Get back out here!" Hiko shouted, "Even I know that you're not supposed to invite yourself into someone's house and then tell them to feed you!"

Nojiko laughed, "No, it's okay. There's a lot to talk about anyway. I've got plenty to go around."

Mada stepped inside, hand still over her eyes, "Thank you Nojiko," she said weakly, obviously still in shock.

-0-0-0-

"This is good," Kerra said promptly after stuffing a mouthful of rice with some sort of orange sauce into her mouth.

"Ugh," Hiko wrinkled his nose, "Try talking without food in your mouth. It's gross."

"Gross?" Kerra chewed once more, a look of confusion on her face. Then, a smirk appeared. She opened her mouth wide and presented her tongue to Hiko, a wad of half-chewed rice sitting front and center, "Mlah! Now _thith_ ith gloth! Look Hikoh, doethn't it look delithiouth?"

"Agh! God! Put that away! I'm gonna puke!" Hiko threw his fork at her face, trying to get the disgusting sight to go away. Kerra gasped in surprise and fell off her chair in an attempt to avoid the eating utensil. She then began choking on the rice. Mada watched on with something like terror, fork frozen halfway to her lips as Hiko rushed over and began slamming the palm of his hand into her back yelling about how he hadn't meant to kill her. Maim her, yes, but kill her, never.

Mada put her fork down and turned to Nojiko. "I am so, so, _so_ sorry, Nojiko. They should never be exposed to public. It was a huge mistake to let them out of their cages."

"Don't worry about it. Just as long as she doesn't die. Do you think she'll be okay?"

Mada stared solemnly, "I hope not." She sighed and picked her fork up again, "So tell me about Luffy's Nakama."

Kerra had ceased her coughing fit and had managed to swallow her food. She sat up and peered over the edge of the table, evidently afraid that climbing back into her chair would disturb the conversation and make it stop. Hiko shook his head in disgust as he returned to his own seat.

"Well," Nojiko held out her hand and started ticking off names on her fingers, "There's Luffy, there's Nami, my sister—she's the navigator—there's Sanji, he's the cook and he fights with his feet, there's Usopp—as far as I can tell, he seems to be the crew's liar—and there's Zoro, who fights with swords, three of them. He's the first mate."

"Hold on a sec!" Kerra shot to her feet and slammed her hands on the tabletop. She threw herself into Nojiko's face, "You mean _Roronoa_ Zoro? The pirate hunter? Santoryu no Roronoa? _He's_ Luffy's Nakama?!"

Nojiko drew back, "Um, yes?"

"Aw, man! That is so AWESOME!" Kerra jumped up and pumped her fist into the air, "Mada! _The_ Roronoa Zoro is Luffy's first mate!"

"So I heard," Mada replied calmly, "Now please, _please_ sit down."

"Geez, Mada. You're no fun."

Nojiko smiled. She liked these odd people, "what about you guys?" she asked.

"What what about us?" Kerra was once again talking around her food.

"What do you do?" she clarified.

"I'm captain!" Kerra declared, "I fight with bombs. That's why we're called the Explode Pirates!"

"We are _not_ going to be called that!" Hoko looked offended, "It's _lame_."

"Well, it doesn't really matter what you think anyway. I'm captain and there is no room for the last mate's opinion."

"What about you?" Nojiko asked Mada.

"Oh, um, I'm the first mate and I paint and, er, read minds."

"And I'm Hiko," He interjected, "I'm last mate and I . . . uh . . . I," he lowered his eyes.

"He protects us, "Mada smiled, "Right, Hiko?"

"Right," he responded, but flopped dejectedly back into his chair.

"None of you are navigator?" Nojiko questioned, "Or cook?"

"Hey!" Kerra pointed at Nojiko with her fork, "Look, lady. We may not be the most conventional crew. We may just have a patchwork of skills, but it works for us."

"Of course. I didn't mean to insult you," Nojiko looked surprised at the girl's sudden change in attitude.

"It's fine, but it's getting kind of late and you still haven't told us where Luffy is," She responded, seeming very insulted indeed, "We can't loiter around here or we'll lose him."

"Kerra!" Mada admonished, "Don't be rude!"

"It's alright," Nojiko smirked, "I understand. Priorities. But Kerra, you're sure? What Arlong Park is now, Luffy did that with his bare hands. You just should have seen what he did to Arlong himself."

"I'm sure." She responded, grinning at the prospects.

"Louge Town. That's where he's going next. The town where Gold Roger was born and executed. After that, he'll be entering the Grand Line, but I wouldn't be surprised if he were already there."

"Thanks," Kerra smiled, "You were a big help, Nojiko," She looked around at her Nakama. Mada was watching her closely, trying to make sure she didn't do anything else stupid and Hiko had his head propped up on his arm and was nodding off. "Come on. We're setting sail on the bright and early."

Kerra circled over to Hiko's side of the table to rouse him while Mada offered her sincerest apologies to Nojiko, yet again. Kerra hoisted Hiko onto her back, thanked their hostess, and departed, waving her goodbye.

During the walk back to the ship, Mada was going on about something pertaining to Kerra's manners but she wasn't paying attention. She smiled up at the moon. This was where it really started. This was truly the beginning of their adventure.

-0-0-0-

AN: Sorry for the wait! I had computer problems! Please forgive me! I'll do better on the next chapter!


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